Regional Ecosystem Office
Memorandum
Date: November 22, 1996
To: Dan McKenzie, Chair, Research & Monitoring Committee
From: Donald R. Knowles, Executive Director
Subject: Review of the Standard and Guideline Concerning 10-acre Minimum for Salvage in Late-Successional Reserves
We would appreciate the views of the Research & Monitoring Committee (RMC) in clarifying the 10-acre salvage standard. The Record of Decision (ROD), pages 13 to 16, discusses the guidelines for salvage in Late-Successional Reserves (LSRs). The following ROD excerpt and related discussion are provided to help focus the RMC clarification of relevant considerations related to the 10-acre salvage standard:
"In all cases, planning for salvage (in LSRs) should focus on long-range objectives,
which are based on desired future condition of the forest. Because LSRs have been established to provide high quality habitat for species associated with late-successional forest conditions, management following a stand-replacing event should be designed to accelerate or not impede the development of these conditions...
The following guidelines are general. Specific guidelines should be developed for each physiographic province, and possibly for different forest types within provinces.
The potential for benefit to species associated with late-successional forest conditions from salvage is greatest when stand replacing events are involved. Salvage in disturbed sites of less than 10 acres is not appropriate because small forest openings are an important component of old growth forests." (ROD, C-14).
The ROD (page C-14) would appear to be clear in cases where an LSR is an unbroken sea of old growth. In those cases, a 10-acre disturbed site would be easy to identify. However, many LSRs have stands of mixed age classes, and may include young stands or clearings that have resulted from fire, recent harvest, or other activities. For LSRs comprised of stands of mixed age classes and pre-existing clearings, we need to clarify how to determine the size of the "disturbed site." For example, if a disturbance of less than 10 acres occurs on the edge or margin of a recent, previous disturbance, how should the 10-acre standard be interpreted?
Proposed salvage activities in LSRs are subject to review by the Regional Ecosystem Office (REO). The REO’s past reviews of salvage proposals in LSRs have assumed that if disturbance events create openings that are substantially connected to recent, previous openings, then salvage could be an appropriate option to consider, even if the opening from the second disturbance event is less than 10 acres. However, for disturbance events of less than 10 acres, that are adjacent to late-successional stands and are not substantially connected to a previous opening, the REO has not considered salvage to be appropriate.
The REO has reviewed a number of specific proposals and has considered site-specific information in those reviews (e.g., levels of down woody debris in the area; the potential interaction between habitat components within the disturbed site and adjacent stands; the potential beneficial and adverse effects of salvage activities to meeting LSR objectives). Other S&Gs for LSRs (e.g., road construction for salvage activities generally is not recommended unless potential benefits exceed the costs of habitat impairment - ROD, C-16) have also been relevant considerations. The REO will continue to consider the specifics of individual proposals but would appreciate RMC’s focused input regarding interpretation of the 10-acre disturbance S&G. While we recognize that concepts such as substantially connected and recent lack ultimate precision, we have found them useful in reviewing proposed salvage activities and would appreciate RMC’s perspective related to the continued use or refinement of these concepts.
Thank you for your prompt attention to this.
cc:
RIEC
REO Reps
834/ly